Offseason Game Thread

Haunted

The Man in the Box
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2006
6,196
I just had an electrician over to scope out a bunch of projects (replacing ungrounded ancient wiring, service upgrade to 200 amps, fix some exterior power and lighting, etc). I'm a little afraid of the total cost but... hey.
 

Jed Zeppelin

Member
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2008
51,291
Oof, I forgot electrical. We definitely have some ancient shit hanging around. Old knob and tube wiring that appears to be mostly capped off or whatever. House electrical is updated but I think there is still some wonkiness. Garage is still on knob and tube, and I shocked myself last weekend on an exposed wire.

I'll fuck around with some stuff but in general electrical and plumbing make me pretty squeamish. Neighbor across the street, back around Halloween, was supposedly soldering some pipes at like 1030 at night and nearly burned the house down. It has been empty since then, with guys showing up once a month or so to clear out debris, clean the yard. Seems like a knockdown is inevitable at this point as the house was already not in great shape. I'm not saying it was attempted insurance fraud but....
 

The Napkin

wise ass al kaprielian
Moderator
SoSH Member
Jul 13, 2002
28,534
right here
Yeah, all we want to do is replace 2 light fixtures. I could probably do it. But we have high ceilings and I'm old and it's just ... there are some things I'm happy to pay someone to do for me at this point in my life. Also while they're here we also want to have them look at the feasibility of adding a couple more plugs around the place and that's definitely something I'm not interested in doing.

And if you're ever buying windows my advice would be to stay away from Marvin. Apparently they use fancy bits and bobs and things and a general window repair person can't get the info from them to order what he needs (or at least the one we had out can't). Grumble.
 

RedOctober3829

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 19, 2005
55,298
deep inside Guido territory
I wanted to replace the oven/stove and countertop/backsplash of my Revere condo that I'm renting out and have had the property management company look into it but both people they had in said I'd have to replace all the cabinets too. Pfft. Not on a rental unit, thanks.

Also been trying to get an electrician and someone to do some window sash repair in our condo and can't get anyone to return a phone call. I'm encouraging The Nephew to think about going into the trades because there must just be a shit ton of demand out there if our smallish jobs aren't even worth a call back.
There's a huge demand for trade people right now and they can make a shit ton of money at it. I would not be mad if my son bailed on college and went to trade school. I know my wallet would like that.
 

RedOctober3829

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 19, 2005
55,298
deep inside Guido territory
Oof, I forgot electrical. We definitely have some ancient shit hanging around. Old knob and tube wiring that appears to be mostly capped off or whatever. House electrical is updated but I think there is still some wonkiness. Garage is still on knob and tube, and I shocked myself last weekend on an exposed wire.

I'll fuck around with some stuff but in general electrical and plumbing make me pretty squeamish. Neighbor across the street, back around Halloween, was supposedly soldering some pipes at like 1030 at night and nearly burned the house down. It has been empty since then, with guys showing up once a month or so to clear out debris, clean the yard. Seems like a knockdown is inevitable at this point as the house was already not in great shape. I'm not saying it was attempted insurance fraud but....
You want to know the funniest thing about us demoing our downstairs bathroom? We opened up the vanity and the previous owner had use car parts for all the tubing underneath the sink.
 

Haunted

The Man in the Box
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2006
6,196
I'm with you Nap - I work hard and am incredibly lucky to be rather well rewarded for it, so I'd rather pay an expert to do quality work than half ass it myself.
 

PedroSpecialK

Comes at you like a tornado of hair and the NHL sa
SoSH Member
Dec 12, 2004
27,164
Cambridge, MA
Yeah getting anyone to come by to scope out small jobs, or to even do menial outdoor / landscaping work, is unbelievably expensive right now. We got quoted $700 for yard work (mowing, mulching, weeding overgrowth from abutting properties) that ended up taking our HOA a couple hours apiece to knock out, just insane levels of demand
 

Haunted

The Man in the Box
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2006
6,196
After spending nearly $13,000 to replace my boiler and hot water heater back in March, I'm already flinching at the electrician quotes we haven't even received yet.

And then the first floor half bathroom needs an overhaul, and then eventually the second floor bathroom...
 

Myt1

educated, civility-loving ass
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Mar 13, 2006
41,575
South Boston
Of course, the week our AC finally gets fixed, the gaskets for the two zones of the baseboard heating start leaking.

Home ownership—nothing like it.
 

Gold Dust Twin 19

Member
SoSH Member
May 27, 2001
63
This is awesome home ownership talk, but somehow I feel like you guys are really talking about the Bruins offseason plans in a secret code that I am not privy to. Keep going though, I think I almost deciphered it.
 

Salem's Lot

Andy Moog! Andy God Damn Moog!
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
14,462
Gallows Hill
And people think I'm crazy for not buying a house.
I’ve owned a home for 10 years, and believe me, I know you’re not crazy. There are so many maintenance costs that make it a zero sum game. It’s like the system is set up to keep the middle class broke and the poor poorer or something like that.
 

Dummy Hoy

Angry Pissbum
SoSH Member
Jul 22, 2006
8,232
Falmouth
Last day of work (school) today...skated a double last night and then closed down the sketchy Chinese joint in town and then had a beer in the parking lot after.

I know teachers complain too much about everything (it's embarrassing to be associated with sometimes) but this has been a staggeringly difficult 15 months. I'm an exhausted but extremely happy camper right about now.
 

TheRealness

Member
SoSH Member
Feb 8, 2006
11,694
The Dirty Shire
I‘m currently trying to trade time on a lawsuit for a contractor to fix two outside walls of mine. I still have to rip out a random sliding door and turn it into a window, then rip out the remaining carpet and re-do the flooring in two rooms upstairs, then do the upstairs stairs, and then replace all the flooring and ultimately the kitchen and rip out the breakfast nook. I am getting my water tested again this month, and set aside $10k just in case there’s a problem. I probably need to re-do the roof in about 5 years.

This doesn’t involve any unplanned shit that has to happen as well.

But hey, my house is now worth twice what I bought it for because people got scared and wanted to move out of the city. So there’s that. (I am not moving any time soon).

Home ownership is a joy.
 

tims4wins

PN23's replacement
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
37,057
Hingham, MA
Last day of work (school) today...skated a double last night and then closed down the sketchy Chinese joint in town and then had a beer in the parking lot after.

I know teachers complain too much about everything (it's embarrassing to be associated with sometimes) but this has been a staggeringly difficult 15 months. I'm an exhausted but extremely happy camper right about now.
Congrats, you’ve earned the break!
 

cshea

Member
SoSH Member
Nov 15, 2006
36,047
306, row 14
We're a week into our kitchen project. Cabinets are in and completed. No issues on that front. Looks fantastic, it's a real relief to see progress. Counter gets templated this week and then installed next week along with the new floor. It's all coming together.

We did have a major problem with our appliance delivery. The delivery crew refused to try and bring the fridge in. They said it was too big. When we made the purchase we told Lowe's we have a 30-inch front door, whatever we buy needs to fit through that opening. No problem, Lowe's said. They can take the doors of the fridge and the depth is 27.75 inches and will fit. Delivery crew wouldn't even attempt it. Claimed they couldn't risk damage to the house or the appliance. Fought me tooth and nail but they refused to try. Even gave me shit with the range that is about 29 inches deep, 30 inches wide (got it in!). After they left, realized the did damage the house (ripped the storm door screws right out of the frame). Fuckers. Tried to get Lowe's on the phone but that was a clusterfuck and waste of an hour. Had to go to the store at 8:00 on Friday to try and talk to someone. The associate and manager we talked to were very apologetic but whatever. They are coming back today to try again and I'm assured they'll take the doors off and everything, but I remain skeptical. The claims process for compensation on the damaged door frame is a joke so I have already accepted that I'l never see a dime of that money. I'm supposed to get the work done and then submit an invoice and they'll reimburse. I'm sure that'll be done in a timely manner. Fortunately the cabinet installer had to come back to finish things on Saturday and was able to patch it for us but he said the frame really needs to be replaced.
 

FL4WL3SS

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 31, 2006
14,913
Andy Brickley's potty mouth
Last day of work (school) today...skated a double last night and then closed down the sketchy Chinese joint in town and then had a beer in the parking lot after.

I know teachers complain too much about everything (it's embarrassing to be associated with sometimes) but this has been a staggeringly difficult 15 months. I'm an exhausted but extremely happy camper right about now.
You're on the cape right? Which sketchy Chinese place?
 

Haunted

The Man in the Box
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2006
6,196
Don't you love when the big box stores contract the work, and then tell you to go chase the contractors (that you'd never have hired in a million years if you were doing that part) for the money for damages?
 

RedOctober3829

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 19, 2005
55,298
deep inside Guido territory
We're a week into our kitchen project. Cabinets are in and completed. No issues on that front. Looks fantastic, it's a real relief to see progress. Counter gets templated this week and then installed next week along with the new floor. It's all coming together.

We did have a major problem with our appliance delivery. The delivery crew refused to try and bring the fridge in. They said it was too big. When we made the purchase we told Lowe's we have a 30-inch front door, whatever we buy needs to fit through that opening. No problem, Lowe's said. They can take the doors of the fridge and the depth is 27.75 inches and will fit. Delivery crew wouldn't even attempt it. Claimed they couldn't risk damage to the house or the appliance. Fought me tooth and nail but they refused to try. Even gave me shit with the range that is about 29 inches deep, 30 inches wide (got it in!). After they left, realized the did damage the house (ripped the storm door screws right out of the frame). Fuckers. Tried to get Lowe's on the phone but that was a clusterfuck and waste of an hour. Had to go to the store at 8:00 on Friday to try and talk to someone. The associate and manager we talked to were very apologetic but whatever. They are coming back today to try again and I'm assured they'll take the doors off and everything, but I remain skeptical. The claims process for compensation on the damaged door frame is a joke so I have already accepted that I'l never see a dime of that money. I'm supposed to get the work done and then submit an invoice and they'll reimburse. I'm sure that'll be done in a timely manner. Fortunately the cabinet installer had to come back to finish things on Saturday and was able to patch it for us but he said the frame really needs to be replaced.
We bought a vanity for our son's room from Buy Buy Baby and they ship their furniture via a local carrier service. They were supposed to deliver it on a certain day and they never arrived so we called. The carrier service said they were short staffed. Scheduled it again and the same thing. A 3rd time they didn't come due to the truck driver forgetting to do it. At this point, we're pulling our hair out because we need this in order to move in. They finally bring it to us and the box is totally fucked up. They tried to get out of there quickly by trying to get my wife to sign the paperwork without looking at the box. She looks in the box and there's 2 holes in the front of the vanity where a forklift would go. They never brought the item because they knew they damaged it and didn't want to be liable for it. Such complete BS, so we returned it and went to another store.
 

Jed Zeppelin

Member
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2008
51,291
In West Dennis for the week with wife, my parents, and sister coming today with nephews. But because I’m not out of the country and have ready computer/internet access my brain won’t let me not think about work.

Employment is a disease. Chronic, and terminal.
 

Haunted

The Man in the Box
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2006
6,196
In West Dennis for the week with wife, my parents, and sister coming today with nephews. But because I’m not out of the country and have ready computer/internet access my brain won’t let me not think about work.

Employment is a disease. Chronic, and terminal.
I feel your pain. I’ve been in management for a little over a year now (healthcare IT), so I have a miserable time unplugging. Even before I took over as manager it would 3-4 days before I stopped reflexively checking emails every 9 minutes.
 

Jed Zeppelin

Member
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2008
51,291
I feel your pain. I’ve been in management for a little over a year now (healthcare IT), so I have a miserable time unplugging. Even before I took over as manager it would 3-4 days before I stopped reflexively checking emails every 9 minutes.
A lot of things run less smoothly when I’m not around/available, because I take on a bunch of shit under the hood nobody else knows or cares how to do, and have more institutional knowledge than basically everyone else on or around my team.

I’m realizing now that my supervisor telling me that our website would fall apart without me is borderline toxic as it is now stuck in my head when I am offline, or supposed to be offline.
 

PedroSpecialK

Comes at you like a tornado of hair and the NHL sa
SoSH Member
Dec 12, 2004
27,164
Cambridge, MA
In West Dennis for the week with wife, my parents, and sister coming today with nephews. But because I’m not out of the country and have ready computer/internet access my brain won’t let me not think about work.

Employment is a disease. Chronic, and terminal.
Just got back from a week in Wellfleet/Orleans that became pretty much a workcation, save for the weekend.

Once / if I hit that financial independence $$ level, I'm fully out and shitposting on RMPS full time - gotta make @TFP earn that moderator status.
 

cshea

Member
SoSH Member
Nov 15, 2006
36,047
306, row 14
2 hours since I got the 20-minute warning call from the delivery company. Crickets.
I'll never spend another penny at Lowe's. I'll go to Home Depot for the little shit and smaller local stores for any of the bigger purchases. Fucking shit show.
 

Haunted

The Man in the Box
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2006
6,196
I'll never spend another penny at Lowe's. I'll go to Home Depot for the little shit and smaller local stores for any of the bigger purchases. Fucking shit show.
Did it ever show?
 

FL4WL3SS

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 31, 2006
14,913
Andy Brickley's potty mouth
I'll never spend another penny at Lowe's. I'll go to Home Depot for the little shit and smaller local stores for any of the bigger purchases. Fucking shit show.
I used to deliver appliances for a small appliance store on the cape when I was 20. It's really hard to determine how long a job is going to take. I walked into some fucking gnarly situations. I'll leave the disgusting things out of this, but there were times I was delivering an appliance, usually a fridge, that I needed to completely take apart to get through a door or up a staircase.

It's grueling work for little pay, give them a bit of a break.
 

cshea

Member
SoSH Member
Nov 15, 2006
36,047
306, row 14
Did it ever show?
They damaged my door frame on Friday while claiming they wouldn’t bring the refrigerator in because they didn’t want to damage it or my house. Today they called me and said we’ll be there in 15 minutes and no-showed without any communication. I got them on the phone and they told me Lowe’s canceled the order.

I don’t know who’s more at fault but it’s beyond aggravating at this point.
 

LogansDad

Member
SoSH Member
Nov 15, 2006
29,053
Alamogordo
I delivered for Lowe's for a couple months after I retired from the Air Force, and @FL4WL3SS is 100% right. We usually wouldn't call until we were actually on the way (i.e. the previous job was complete), but it was really difficult to plan the day out. Taking apart a 500+ pound fridge to get it through some tiny doorways is just awful, not to mention some of the god awful nasty houses you end up in.

Sorry they damaged your door, you should be able to get the store to pay for damages (stay on them about it, but I promise they will get there when they can).

I have no idea why it would get canceled after they said they were on their way, though.
 

ColdSoxPack

Well-Known Member
Silver Supporter
Jul 14, 2005
2,351
Simi Valley, CA
Had the carpets in my entire house steam cleaned yesterday. Picked the guy off Google. He pulls up with a battered white econoline van, no signs on the van whatsoever, and runs in his hose from the water pump boiler thing inside the van that had holes in some hoses and others were duck taped. It looked like the world's first and oldest steam cleaning van. I retreated to the patio to work from home. The noise was deafening for 2 hours. Neighbors unimpressed. Suddenly the roar from the van became a high pitched shriek followed by a thud then utter silence. Smoke came wafting through the patio and it smelled like burning rubber. He said a belt went funny and he left to go get another van with another heat-water thingy. Ended up doing a decent job. He was crazy as a loon.
 

bagwell1

New Member
Jul 31, 2006
442
Jacksonville
Let’s take this on a neighbor tangent. I thought I was relatively safe when a couple with late teens moved in next door. But lately, there seems to be some bizarre mother/daughter/daughter’s boyfriend thing going on as the three are always hanging out In the backyard. I have no idea why the backyard has such appeal to the kids as our neighborhood is walkable to Parks/River Front/great town center and we are 20 minutes from the beach. Mom giggles like a loon and takes pictures of the kids posing/hugging/kissing. Purchases have gone from tree swing…to hammock to trampoline…(for 17 year olds?!?!). It appears for picture taking purchases. The other day all three climbed onto the garage roof so mommy could take more pictures of them kissing. I assume for InstaFace.

Our Covid gift to each other was a new deck but we thought we had plenty of time to figure out what else we were going to do.

Plans have been accelerated. We have a shit load of Bamboo (clumping, not running) trees being installed next week To block the view. It can’t get here fast enough.
 

Jed Zeppelin

Member
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2008
51,291
Saw something I probably wasn’t supposed to yesterday. Supervisor is going on maternity leave soon and passed along a document with a bunch of tasks that will be passed on to others in her absence. On this doc was a link to our 2022 strategy planning deck, which featured a slide stating our plan to elevate yours truly to a director position. It’s not a huge surprise as it has been discussed, but still jarring to see it in print as an inevitability. Just have to not royally fuck up the next 6 months, I guess.
 

Haunted

The Man in the Box
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2006
6,196
Saw something I probably wasn’t supposed to yesterday. Supervisor is going on maternity leave soon and passed along a document with a bunch of tasks that will be passed on to others in her absence. On this doc was a link to our 2022 strategy planning deck, which featured a slide stating our plan to elevate yours truly to a director position. It’s not a huge surprise as it has been discussed, but still jarring to see it in print as an inevitability. Just have to not royally fuck up the next 6 months, I guess.
Good luck!!
 

Myt1

educated, civility-loving ass
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Mar 13, 2006
41,575
South Boston
Saw something I probably wasn’t supposed to yesterday. Supervisor is going on maternity leave soon and passed along a document with a bunch of tasks that will be passed on to others in her absence. On this doc was a link to our 2022 strategy planning deck, which featured a slide stating our plan to elevate yours truly to a director position. It’s not a huge surprise as it has been discussed, but still jarring to see it in print as an inevitability. Just have to not royally fuck up the next 6 months, I guess.
That is really fucking cool.
 

Haunted

The Man in the Box
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2006
6,196
I applied for an internal leadership course that seems to be a bit of an internal catapult for new managers like me. As the new corporation takes over more and more I figured anything I can do to pad the ol' resume can't hurt, and I'm hoping for a new position with the soon-to-be-coming Telehealth division. Hopefully I'm accepted to this class and hopefully it helps.